The Best Starting Point: Where to Begin
If you are looking to plunge into the delightful world of Donna Andrews, the absolute best starting point is Murder with Peacocks (1999), the first book in the Meg Langslow series. Starting here is highly recommended because it introduces Meg, her eccentric family, and her future romantic partner, Michael. It also sets up the running joke of her family's wild antics and Meg's career as a decorative blacksmith.
However, if you are a fan of holiday mysteries, you can easily jump into one of her many Christmas specials. Because each mystery is self-contained, you won't get lost in the plot, though you will miss some of the long-term character development and relationship progression. If you prefer tech-savvy mysteries, you should start with You've Got Murder (2002), which kicks off the four-book Turing Hopper series featuring a sentient AI assistant.
The Meg Langslow Series in Publication Order
The Meg Langslow series has been running for over two decades. It follows Meg as she solves crimes, manages her chaotic family, and transitions from her home in Yorktown, Virginia, to the fictional cozy town of Caerphilly, Virginia (which happens in book four, Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon). Here is the complete list of books in publication order:
- Murder With Peacocks (1999) - The award-winning debut where Meg tries to survive three weddings, including her own mother's, while solving a murder.
- Murder With Puffins (2000) - Meg and Michael escape to a remote island, only to get trapped by a storm and a murderer.
- Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos (2001) - Set at a historic re-enactment where a black-market dealer is killed.
- Crouching Buzzard, Leaping Loon (2002) - Meg takes a job at her brother's computer game company, which is plagued by pranks and murder.
- We'll Always Have Parrots (2003) - A wild trip to a fan convention for a television show.
- Owls Well That Ends Well (2005) - Meg handles a massive yard sale that turns deadly.
- No Nest for the Wicket (2006) - A game of croquet leads to the discovery of a body.
- The Penguin Who Knew Too Much (2007) - Meg finds a colony of penguins in her basement along with a corpse.
- Cockatiels at Seven (2008) - Meg must clear her friend's name when she is accused of kidnapping.
- Six Geese A-Slaying (2008) - The first Christmas-themed book in the series, featuring a parade and a Santa-suited corpse.
- Swan for the Money (2009) - Meg's mother enters a competitive rose show that turns fatal.
- Stork Raving Mad (2010) - A heavily pregnant Meg tries to solve a murder while preparing for twins.
- The Real Macaw (2011) - Meg tries to rescue animals from a shelter while clearing her father's name.
- Some Like it Hawk (2012) - Caerphilly's town council is held hostage by a corrupt developer.
- Hen of the Baskervilles (2013) - A local state fair and a prize-winning chicken are disrupted by crime.
- Duck the Halls (2013) - The second Christmas book, featuring choir drama and holiday-themed high jinks.
- The Good, the Bad, and the Emus (2014) - Meg searches for her grandfather's long-lost feral emus.
- The Nightingale Before Christmas (2014) - A festive holiday mystery involving a decorator's show house.
- Lord of the Wings (2015) - A Halloween-themed festival goes wrong in Caerphilly.
- Die Like an Eagle (2016) - Meg coaches her sons' rookie travel baseball team while solving a murder.
- Gone Gull (2017) - Meg visits her grandmother on an island off the coast of Maine.
- How the Finch Stole Christmas! (2017) - Meg helps organize a local production of A Christmas Carol while managing chaos.
- Toucan Keep a Secret (2018) - Meg finds a body hidden inside a local church's columbarium.
- Lark! the Herald Angels Sing (2018) - The local nativity scene gets complicated when a baby is left in the manger.
- Terns of Endearment (2019) - A family cruise goes off course when a passenger is killed.
- Owl Be Home for Christmas (2019) - Meg and her family get snowed in at a library conference during a storm.
- The Falcon Always Wings Twice (2020) - A Renaissance Faire comes to Caerphilly.
- The Gift of the Magpie (2020) - Meg helps a charity project during the winter season and stumbles onto a crime.
- Murder Most Fowl (2021) - Caerphilly's Shakespeare festival is interrupted by real-life tragedy.
- The Twelve Jays of Christmas (2021) - Meg's father hosts an illustrator who becomes a prime suspect.
- Round Up the Usual Peacocks (2022) - Meg investigates cold cases featured on her brother's true-crime podcast.
- Dashing Through the Snowbirds (2022) - A holiday mystery involving a group of Canadian tech researchers.
- Birder, She Wrote (2023) - Meg helps a famous novelist and solves a murder in the local woods.
- Let It Crow! Let It Crow! Let It Crow! (2023) - A festive mystery centered around a living nativity and local artisans.
- Between a Flock and a Hard Place (2024) - Meg deals with historic home preservation and a murder.
- Rockin' Around the Chickadee (2024) - A Christmas-themed cozy mystery involving a local toy drive.
The Turing Hopper AI Mysteries
In addition to Meg Langslow, Andrews wrote a short, highly original series featuring Turing Hopper. Turing is a sentient Artificial Intelligence Personality (AIP) who operates like a private investigator in the digital realm. It is a fantastic "techno-cozy" hybrid that is best read in order:
- You've Got Murder (2002) - Turing tries to find her missing creator.
- Click Here For Murder (2003) - Turing investigates the suspicious death of a corporate executive.
- Access Denied (2004) - Turing deals with hackers and security breaches to solve a crime.
- Delete All Suspects (2005) - Turing navigates the corporate ladder and virtual clues to find a killer.
What to Know Before You Start
The Meg Langslow books are famous for their avian pun titles, eccentric secondary characters (like Meg's DNA-obsessed father and her dramatic mother), and lighthearted tone. While the mysteries are resolved at the end of each book, the personal lives of the characters progress continuously. Meg goes from a single blacksmith to a married woman and mother of twins, and the town of Caerphilly itself grows. If you want to witness the organic progression of this close-knit community, sticking to the publication order is your best bet.